London area of Stockwell guide

What to do and where to stay in London's Stockwell neighbourhood

With good transport links and a diverse ethnic and cultural mix, Stockwell is one of south London's up-and-coming areas. Its name is thought to derive from "stoc", the old English word for a tree trunk or post. From the 13th to 19th centuries, Stockwell was a rural manor on the edge of London, including market gardens and the famous naturalist John Tradesant's botanical garden. Today, this area of Lambeth is home to London's largest Portuguese population which settled in the area in the 60s and 70s alongside Stockwell's many Afro-Caribbean and West African inhabitants. Heavily bombed in World War II, Stockwell contains a large amount of social housing, while famous former and current residents include Vincent Van Gogh (briefly), Joanna Lumley, Roger Moore and Will Self. Stockwell Tube was the location of the controversial police shooting of innocent Brazilian electrician Jean Charles de Menezes in 2005 following the July bombings.